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Yes, certain plastic materials like polyethylene and polypropylene can transmit infrared light. These materials are often used in applications where cost and weight are critical factors, although they may not offer the same level of optical performance as sapphire or germanium.

Sapphire is often considered one of the best transparent materials for allowing infrared light to pass through. It has excellent transmission properties in the infrared spectrum and is also very durable and scratch-resistant.

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As the above video shows, these lenses satisfied a need for lighthouses that could shine farther and through dense layers of fog. The Fresnel lens, invented by Augustin-Jean Fresnel, helped do that by capturing all the light coming from a lamp, then magnifying and steering it in one direction. Suddenly, lighthouses became more useful and shipwrecks diminished.

When choosing a material for infrared transmission, factors to consider include the wavelength range of interest, the material's transmission efficiency, durability, thermal stability, and mechanical properties. Cost and ease of fabrication may also be important depending on the application.

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Fresnel lenses are still in operation today. According to the US Lighthouse Society, more than 75 Fresnel lenses are in use in American lighthouses, and businesses such as Dan Spinella’s Artworks Florida craft replicas that capture the beauty — and functionality — of the 19th-century breakthrough.

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Quartz, particularly fused silica, has good infrared transmission properties, especially in the near-infrared range. However, its performance drops off in the mid to far-infrared range compared to materials like germanium or sapphire.

The most important part of a lighthouse might be one of the beautiful tools hidden inside of it: the Fresnel lens, a breakthrough that changed seafaring and saved lives.

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Germanium is used in infrared applications because it has a high refractive index and excellent transmission in the infrared range, particularly between 2 to 14 micrometers. It is commonly used in lenses and windows for infrared optics.

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